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Show Old ions Had Humorous Rule No Boots, 5 Sleepers , Allowed in One Bed MILWAUKEE, WIS. In the colonial co-lonial days, hotel service was spelled with a small "s." The bruised, dusty stagecoach passenger, pas-senger, or the stiff, weary horseback horse-back rider who entered Ye Olde Inne may have been satisfied, but demands of guests for service have changed. Hotel rule of the early American period seem quaintly humorous hu-morous today. "No more than five to sleep in one bed," read a notice posted in establishments which someday might advertise, "George Washington Washing-ton slept here!" "No boots to be worn in bed," warned other signs. Then, just to prove to awe smitten smit-ten readers that the lodging house thad a reputation to maintain, it sternly warned: "Organ grinders to sleep in the wash house ... no razor grinders or tinkers taken in ... no beer allowed in the kitchen.'' Prices were in keeping with the dignity and excellence of the service. serv-ice. "Four pence a night per bed," announced the sign; "Six pence with supper." The evolution of our hotel title from that of "Inn," "Guest House," and earlier forms, is a fairly recent re-cent development. The date for the opening of the first real American hotel is 1794, when the unassuming "City Hotel" hung out its shingle in New York city. It had much to learn about service. Even up to the time of the Civil war, hotel accommodations were still quite primitive. Plumbing and sanitary fixtures were crude and simple. The old familiar china bowl and pitcher, with its single towel and bar of coarse yellow soap summed up each room's washing facilities. Guest rooms were unheated; the only baths were in the basement, since there was no piped water above the kitchen. Room service calls in Lincoln's day were accomplished accom-plished through pulling a cord attached at-tached to a bell at the desk. Modern metropolitan hotels have come a long way from that sort of service. Ranking seventh largest among our national enterprises, a modern hotel represents a large, complicated complicat-ed business. Over 600,000 employes earn , a billion dollars anually. |